


Running Hot For You

by dara3008



Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: Case Fic, Detective Partners, Gavin Reed Redemption, Gavin Reed Whump, Gavin has cats, Gay Disaster Gavin Reed, Getting Together, M/M, Panic Attacks, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Protective Upgraded Connor | RK900, RK900 is Colin, Sass, Slow Burn-ish, Snark, Soft Upgraded Connor | RK900, Soft Upgraded Connor | RK900/Gavin Reed, Torture, and now for the fun parts, and now for the warnings, but also Nines, various kinds
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-22
Updated: 2020-04-24
Packaged: 2021-03-02 03:42:01
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 17,517
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23788747
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dara3008/pseuds/dara3008
Summary: A year after the Battle of Detroit, Gavin Reed has changed. Too bad his change had led him here; getting tortured by the Crave Family for an undercover job gone wrong.If only he had a good partner; perhaps a similar one to Hank's.
Relationships: Hank Anderson/Connor - background, Upgraded Connor | RK900/Gavin Reed
Comments: 50
Kudos: 382





	1. Torture

**Author's Note:**

> So... this is the longest fic I have ever written and it's for a fucking crackship, I can't even.
> 
> I'm mostly kidding. I love this pairing a lot and writing this fic has been an amazing experience, because the words just... flowed. And if you know me at all, you know that that's not often for me.
> 
> \--
> 
> Since watching and then later on playing D:BH, I've loved Gavin for some weird reason. Maybe I just really like assholes and wish to write their redemptions, so this is it. His redemption and his way to a partner that loves him and supports him a lot and vice versa. 
> 
> The biggest fucking thank you goes to my amazing, amazing friend [Bec](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Reloumi/profile), who has been reading through this, ninja beta-ing along the way, and fangirling with me over it, so thank you thank you thank you, babe <3

The first thing Gavin noticed when he woke up, was the dull, pulsing pain in his head. The second thing, following quickly after, was his hands, zip-tied to a solid metal chair. "Fuck," he seethed through his teeth, jaw most definitely bruised, along with his eye, and the bump on his temple. " _Fuck_."

"Once more with feeling, I see." A gleeful voice came from behind him and Gavin tensed when he felt a cold hand slide over his neck.

He knew the voice, the British accent. Right. _Act._ Letting out a confused sound, he turned his head left and right, frantically. "Robin? Robin, is that you? What's happening?" His voice took on a well practised panicked edge, but the hand on his neck only tightened in answer.

"You can drop the act, _Detective Gavin Reed_." The glee in the voice was gone, coldness all he heard now. That and fury. The familiar redhead came into his view, and Gavin tried hard not to slip up.

He blinked up at him, eyes wide. "Who? I don't understand, I-" The words were ripped from him with a solid punch square across his cheek. "Fuck!"

"I told you to drop the act, did I not?" Robin Crave grabbed his throbbing jaw between strong fingers, tilting his head up. His other hand swiped his hair out of his forehead and gathered it into his fist, high on his head. "Now." A forced calm fell over the man, and he smiled, wide and manic. "Why don't we try again?" Feeling blood in his mouth, Gavin did drop his act, choosing to gather it up and spit it right into Crave's face. His eyes narrowed when the man only let out a loud laugh. "That's more _like_ it!" With a yank, he pushed Gavin's head to the side and followed it up with another solid punch.

Gavin tried to roll with the hit, managing a little in his restricted position. He let his breath out through his nose, spitting more blood onto the floor. "What gave me away?" He finally asked, back to his own voice, deeper, less jumpy.

Crave hummed as he made his way to a duffel bag in the corner of the simple room. "Nothing you did, my dear. You've been _quite_ the fine actor." 

"Yes, well, if not for my cop dad, I'm sure I would have been an amazing performer." The detective rolled his eyes, subtly checking out the room at the same time. No windows, one door, metal, no doubt locked. The chair he was sitting on, a light bulb not quite above him, shining right into his eyes. Basement. Crave and his duffel bag, a locker in the corner. That was it. Not really good options. Another hum and Robin stood, something glinting on his fingers. "Brass knuckles?" A chuckle escaped Gavin, and at the same time, his stomach tightened. "How old fashioned."

"Old fashioned, perhaps." Crave grinned. "But that's just the start, love." He stroked a finger almost lovingly over the bronze metal. "Just the start." 

\---

And oh it was just the start.

Four months undercover had prepared him for potential slip-ups. The Crave family was one of the most notorious crime families in all of Detroit, best known for their deep roots in Red Ice distribution. Theoretically, he knew they were tough. Theoretically, he also knew Crave was their prefered… interrogator.

Practically though. Practically, he knew that Crave was… funny. That he was goofy. That he had four dogs, all named after the Ninja Turtles and a cat named Splinter. That he made the best Spaghetti Bolognese Gavin had ever tasted. That he… flirted. With Gavin. A lot.

And it wasn’t like Gavin had gone too deep. He had been under no delusion about his assignment, had taken the necessary steps to stay as clear-headed as possible. Had been under Hank’s constant watch, had to report to him each day and spent time at the precinct.

But being on the literal receiving end of this family’s wrath… well, maybe he hadn’t been quite as prepared, as he had hoped. 

And he still didn’t know what had given him away! 

Left alone, after a solid hour of beating, Gavin just breathed slowly and deeply. He spat more blood onto the floor, stomach twisting with the taste of it. His head was spinning, but he was gradually cataloguing his injuries to keep it clear. A couple of broken fingers, broken nose, four bruised ribs, one probably broken, swollen eye. Destroyed ego, really. Though he hadn't cracked, hadn't even stopped mouthing off, he hadn't quite managed to keep all the pained sounds at bay. He needed to form a plan. Crave hadn't told him what had compromised his identity, so he didn't really have anyone to blame. But that also meant that he couldn't be sure that anyone at the DPD knew; that anyone was looking for him. He needed to get out. He needed- God, but his head _hurt_. He needed to- He needed-

\---

He woke up to ice-cold water, that took the breath right out of his lung. Disoriented and freezing, he blinked up at the two people in the room. "Rise and shine, love. Time for a new conversation." Crave was back, and assisting him was Dolores, the head of the family. Definitely bad news. 

“Morning, Rob. Mama D.” Gavin wheezed, a bright and bloody grin stretching on his face, even though it hurt like a motherfucker. Don’t let them see anything, don’t let them think he was caving. 

Dolores looked at him with raised eyebrows, strict features even stricter than he got used to seeing in the four months he had been undercover. Her manicured long fingers were daintily holding a bucket. “Can it, Dollface.” While Mama D looked like a middle-aged Maggie Smith, her voice sounded more like someone who has been smoking since birth. “Mama D is for family.” 

The detective chuckled faintly and then flinched when he felt a hand stroke through his wet hair firmly. “So, Rob-” A hiss interrupted him, when it was yanked back, his throat exposed. With a grunt, he glared up at the redhead. “You didn’t tell me. What gave me away?” He looked around the room once more. There was a clock in the corner. It wasn’t working right, going just a tad too slow. No way to tell the time then.

“Who’s asking the questions, Robbie?” Dolores intervened. “I think we’re asking the questions, do we not?”

“That we do, mum.” Robin grinned down at Gavin, fingers raking almost gently through his curls. “That we do. Now, _Reed_.” Crave mumbled right into his ear. “While we’re not pressed for time, let’s still not waste it. There’s something I’ve always wanted to try.” Gavin frowned when he saw Dolores reach for a piece of fabric. The rag was wet and there was another bucket filled with water nearby. Oh. Shit. 

When the rag was slapped over his face, he tried to struggle, but the position in the chair only got more and more restricting. He resolutely kept his mouth and eyes shut, but the second the cold water started to flow over his face, he let out a gasp. Slowly, but surely a burn started in his nose and moved right into his lungs. He couldn’t breathe. Worse, he felt as if his lungs were filling up with water, even though he knew they weren’t. Just as his vision was starting to fade again, the wet cloth was yanked from his face and he gasped in several aborted breaths. Robin was observing him like a fucking lab rat. “What do you say, Reed? Round two?”

“Fuck yo-”

\---

Things to cross off his bucket list. Waterboarding. Not fun. Not that it had ever been on his bucket list, to begin with. 

His chest felt tight and breathing hurt. His muscles felt sore from tensing every time the rag was back on his face. He was wet and cold and his back started to protest from the metal chair. He hadn’t eaten or drank anything in - and there really was only guessing - about thirty-six hours and passing out probably didn’t count as sleep, so he wasn’t doing all that hot on that front. 

He hadn’t caved yet, hadn’t told them anything about the DPD’s progress on the Crave family, hadn’t given any other names on the case. And he didn’t intend to. He wouldn’t! But slowly, he started to get a little nervous. Without his daily updates, Hank and Connor would probably grow suspicious soon. They would find him… right?

With a sigh, he tried to lean his head back against the chair, but even that was too low to relax his back. At least he had some time before they- “Jesus!” With a crash, the metal door was flung against the concrete wall and someone stomped in. “Hey! Hey, what-” A blindfold was wrapped around his head. “What-”

“Have fun tonight, love.” 

“Fuck!” Teeth clamped around his neck in a bruising bite and Crave chuckled deeply into his ear. “What the fuck are you-” The hands left him altogether and he heard the door shut again. “Hey! What-” The light was turned off and he was left in darkness. What the fuck now? What the fuck now! He was breathing harshly, not knowing what to expect. It was nerve-wracking, he was all but blind in the dark room and he didn’t hear anything happening. They wouldn’t just blindfold him for shits and giggles, there was nothing to gain, except for-

Oh. Oh “Fuck.”

And just as the thought entered his mind - the echo of an idea, something he had read about once, because he had been bored on the job - the music set in. If you could even call it music. Loud noise, instruments, squealing and bashing, his ears ringing from it. And just as quickly as it started, it was cut off again. God, but he would relish in kicking that little bastard’s-

_Noise!_

-ass! That bastard’s pale ass. Fuck him and-

_Noise!_

-his fucking dog-

_Noise!_

-s. His dogs weren’t at fault, really, nothing against the dogs, just that fucking Robin Cr-

_Noise!_

“Fuuuuuuuuuuck!”

Everything in his body was strung tight. He flinched when music came on, when music didn’t come on, but he expected it to because he was trying to find a pattern, where no pattern was present. Everything was too fucking tense. Everything hurt. His head was throbbing and his breathing came hard. Every single time he thought he might pass out, the fucking noise started up again and startled him into consciousness. 

He didn’t know how long. Could be hours, could be fucking days. 

One constant, not constant at all. 

_Noise._

_Noise._

_Noise!_

\---

The undercover gig hadn’t even been his idea, for fuck’s sake. 

Chen had taken one look at him and had gone: “Well if anyone is blending in as a thug, it’s Gavin.” 

Not that he hadn’t been t _rained_ for it, but he hadn’t exactly done a lot of undercover work before. He used to be in narcotics, it was a logical choice and he had admittedly jumped at the opportunity. Fowler and him gave each other a lot of shit, but the fact alone that the Captain had trusted him enough to send him on the assignment was… it meant a lot. 

And it wasn’t supposed to be hard. Gavin was an asshole, he was supposed to fit right in. And he had! The department had given him a sizable stash of Red Ice to ‘deal’ and he had quickly caught the family’s attention, just as expected. They had contacted him, had threatened him, had tested him, and after a month of regular deliveries, they had invited him to the first meeting. Two months in, he was invited to the first family meeting. Three months in, he was eating dinner at Mama D’s house, made by her son. Robin. Thus Luke Darson was born.

The goal had been information gathering. Names, meeting places, dealers, clients, distributors, makers, everything. Possible events for raids, situations to get caught red-handed in. That one thread of string, to unravel the family business. 

Now, he was here. Found out. Somehow.

\---

The faintest caress of fingers on his neck startled him back into the present. The noise was gone, had been gone for a while, but he hadn’t even noticed, so focused on waiting for it to start up again. The tips brushed into his hair gently, but he flinched away from them, tensing. Sure enough, a hard yank followed, Robin's laughter filling the room once more. "Are we ready to talk yet, my dear?" His torturer asked, amusement almost completely cloaking the frustration in his voice. Almost.

Gavin was fatigued, his head was woozy and despite the water on his face, he was quite dehydrated. Everything _hurt_ , his broken nose restricting his breathing faintly. "Fuck you," he rasped out, his voice raw, but not quite gone yet.

Palm against his cheek, Crave gave him a few hard taps. "Gavin, Gavin, Gavin.” He pulled the blindfold off and Gavin blinked in the harsh light, eyes watering slightly. Robin let his hand wander down, thumb stroking against the bite mark on his neck, bruised and incredibly tender. Gavin couldn’t repress the faint whimper. “It’s sad, really.” His tormenter mumbled, tilting his head up. “Those sounds are wasted on torture, there’s so much I would have rather done with you, _Gavin_.” He smiled, but it was far from a nice smile. “That name does suit you way more than Luke ever did.” 

“Many thanks.” Even rolling his eyes hurt. In any different situation, Gavin would be quite flattered by the comments, what with Robin being… pretty fucking hot. But well, he was being tortured, so really, no time. “How long until you finally kill me?” He tried to sound bratty, tried to sound like the asshole that he normally was. But his head was spinning and his voice was faint. His eyes were blinking shut.

The redhead raised his eyebrows at him, starting to frown. “Oh, my dear. Is this the only way you see this end?” When the detective’s only answer was a snort, Crave sighed deeply, hand wandering into Gavin’s curls again. “I admit, you didn’t leave us much choice. We don’t really know what you've already told your little friends at the precinct, so we have to be careful. But you could always-" He leaned closer again, breath tingling against Gavin's skin. It made him shiver, but not exactly in the sexy way. "- join us."

With a disbelieving laugh, the detective levelled him with a look. "Seriously?"

"Come on!" Crave leaned back and spread his arms. "Why not? You've been good at this. Good with us. Why not ditch those dickbags?"

"Right. Right right right." Gavin mumbled, taking a few measured breaths. "Because you and the family will just accept me with open arms. Right."

"What's that?" Pressing his fingers against the bruising on his face and neck, Robin smiled benignly when Gavin flinched. "You think the last few days haven't been punishment enough? Do you need more, Gavin dear?" His smile turned a little more manic. "Because there _is_ more. Trust me. There is more."

\---

There was more.

The days had merged into one, making Gavin lose count on how many had passed. Crave’s fists had made a comeback, without the brass knuckles this time. Not that he needed them anymore, with Gavin’s cracked and tender bones everything hurt enough already. Afterwards, he was left alone again with the blindfold and the noise.

He was shivering, both from cold and exhaustion. Twitching whenever he heard the faintest of sounds, even if it wasn’t the blasted music. His breathing was sounding harsh in his own ears and his head seemed to throb. He wished he could just pass the fuck out.

His mind kept going back to the day of his… well, kidnapping. He had gone to Hank’s for his normal report, had gotten his usual amount of Red Ice for his weekly delivery from Chen behind the precinct and had taken the long way around the alleyway to get to his car, parked a few blocks away. He hadn’t noticed any tails and Crave had mentioned that it hadn’t been Gavin’s fault that he had been caught. So what then? Was there a mole at the DPD? Did someone recognize his face somehow? He still didn’t know who to thank for this mess. 

He just knew that he had gotten to the Crave warehouse, had greeted Darius at the door and then pain and darkness as he had been knocked out with something heavy and blunt. 

\---

He didn’t know how long they kept him isolated.

He didn’t know why Hank and the DPD took so long to find him, but then again, he didn’t even know where he was. Maybe in the basements of the warehouse, maybe in a different fucking state, he had no idea.

Funny, that in the end, it wasn’t even the DPD that found him. 

It could have been days before he suddenly heard something different than the music. The door opened again, but not as harshly as the times before. He heard a commotion from outside, men running and yelling commands. Gunshots. And a voice, familiar and yet weirdly… not. “- detective, Perkins. Leaving him would be unwise.” Silence, as his blindfold was lifted, but the person was standing behind his back. “Negative, Special Agent. You shouldn’t bring personal feelings into this. Yes, I did in fact just disobey an order.” Gavin flinched when he felt cool metal against his wrist, but the knife was only used to snap off the zip ties. “Please refrain from yelling into my ear, Agent, it won’t help our situation.” Rubbing his hand over his sore wrists, Gavin shifted around and blinked when he saw the man pull out his earpiece with a disgusted sounding huff, putting it into a coat pocket. It was an android. In fact-

“Connor?” His voice was almost gone, his throat scratchy.

The man - Connor, but… not Connor - sent him a look, eyebrows raised. “Hello, Detective Reed. I’m going to get you out of here.” 

“Who-”

“My name is Colin. I’m an RK900 unit with the FBI. There’s been a raid on the Crave family and I happened to hear about you by one of the men I… incapacitated.”

Head still reeling, Gavin shook it slowly. “The fuck?” A raid? RK _900_? As in newer than Connor? Better? He blinked up at the android and frowned faintly. Taller. Huh.

“Detective.” Fingers snapped in front of his eyes and he flinched back from the sudden noise. “My apologies, Detective. Can you stand?”

Gavin nodded before he even tried and started to push himself to his feet. They, of course, didn’t hold him after several days of no movement and buckled beneath him. _Colin_ grabbed him immediately and with one swoop, pulled him up into his arms. “Shit.” Gavin wheezed, his fingers digging into the android’s coat. “This is humiliating.” Made even more humiliating by the softness of his voice. 

“I’m sure your ego will survive, Detective.” While the words were almost harsh, they sounded nothing like how the android had sounded while talking to Perkins. They almost sounded amused. A door slammed close somewhere and the detective jumped lightly, cursing. Colin pulled him a little closer at that. “It will get loud out there.”

Gavin, too tired to keep his head up anymore, let it slump against a broad shoulder. He let out a snort. “I survived this long, haven't I.”

“That you have, Detective.” Adjusting his hold, - and really, Gavin probably weighed nothing to him - the android moved out. On their way, Gavin saw bodies, unconscious and wounded left and right. Mostly lackeys got rounded up by several FBI jackets. 

“Stupid.” The detective mumbled, looking around at the lesser dogs getting caught. “Whose dumb idea was this raid?”

“Special Agent Richard Perkins.” Colin supplied, while he moved forward without looking around. 

Another snort, this one disgusted. “Of course.” 

Humming, Colin shouldered through a door and Gavin finally breathed in actual fresh air. Even the rain falling down on them felt like a small blessing. “I have to agree with that sentiment.” The android said, voice taking on the same disgusted lilt, that Gavin had used.

There was no love lost between the DPD and Perkins, no wonder the idiot would order a raid that wouldn’t catch the heads of the family. And really, even _Gavin_ thought that the man was a piece of crap, the way he had treated androids. Sure, he himself hadn’t exactly been on the front line of android emancipation, but even he had seen that they weren’t doing anything dangerous under Markus Manfred’s lead and that they were… more human than he had given them credit for. 

Gavin had changed in the year since the revolution. Had seen a lot of errors in the way he had been thinking. And if he was giving Connor shit now, it was a _Connor_ thing and not an _android_ thing. And it had been months since actual maliciousness was swapped between them.

It didn’t surprise him at all that Perkins had gotten himself his own shiny new toy, though.

They went silent, after that. Silent when Colin moved him into a waiting car, silent when he got in himself, silent even when the taller man pulled him closer to his body, running it hotter than necessary to provide some heat for Gavin’s clam skin. He gave him a bottle of water and then seemed to communicate with someone silently, judging by the yellow spinning of his LED. Gavin was thankful for the silence. His ears were still ringing.

He only let out a groan when he saw the hospital building coming closer, but the android started listing of everything that was wrong with him and when he got to the still present dehydration, the detective quickly relented. Maybe some extra care was alright after all.

\---

“You don’t have to stay, you know?” Gavin peered up at the android, pacing around in the ER entrance. The detective was currently filling out his patient record, having refused Colin’s help. His right hand was fine… mostly. “I’m sure you have reports to make, ecetera ecetera.” 

“I’d like to confirm that you get the care that you need.” The FBI agent levelled him with a weirdly knowing look. “And that you don’t just walk out once I’m gone.” Gavin would have rolled his eyes if that wasn’t exactly something he would do. He wasn’t quite sure how the android would know that, though. As it was, he flushed slightly and looked back down at his form. 

“Fuck.” When Colin gave him a worried look, the detective waved his hand. “It's just... my fucking cats were alone the whole time.” 

“No, they weren’t.” Momentarily confused at how the FBI agent could possibly know _that_ Gavin looked up, only to see Connor arrive, followed closely by Hank. “I might have broken into your apartment, sorry Gavin.”

Blinking up at them, Gavin was about to shrug it off, when something came to his mind. “Wait, Anderson has my fucking keys!”

Connor stared for a moment and then suddenly slapped the back of his hand against the lieutenant’s chest when the older man started snickering. “Sorry, Reed. Good to see you’re still kicking.” 

“You liar.” The RK800 unit mumbled under his breath and then moved closer to Gavin, taking the form out of his hands and efficiently filling everything out himself while the detective slumped back into his chair, with little protest. 

Colin observed the exchange with interest, blue ring spinning yellow, but quickly turned to Hank, shaking his hand. “Hello, my name is Colin. I’m with the FBI and helped with Detective Reed's transfer to hospital.”

“By ‘helped’ he means single-handedly, cause Perkins wanted to leave me there, tied up.” Gavin huffed and Hank’s eyes narrowed in annoyance. The RK900 unit looked surprised, so Gavin shrugged his shoulders, wincing a little. “Wasn’t hard to figure out by your side of the conversation.”

The android hummed, pulling the earpiece out of his pocket again. Coming back from delivering Gavin’s patient form, Connor smiled at his… cousin? “Thank you for helping him. I’m sure he hasn’t thanked you himself yet.”

Colin inclined his head dismissively and looked down at Gavin, who raised his chin in what little defiance he had left. “I’d be more offended if I wasn’t certain that the detective has a concussion and is barely awake.”

This time Gavin did roll his eyes, but a smile was tugging at the corners of his lips. “Thank you, Colin.” He said in the fakest sweet voice he could muster. Then he turned to Connor and adopted a more sincere voice. “And thank you for the cats. They’d have probably eaten each other otherwise.” 

“I’m sure Stuart would have made a hearty meal for Alec and James.” Hank threw in and Gavin pointedly glared at him.

“Did you just call my cat fat, Anderson?” Before the lieutenant could answer him, his name was called out and Connor helped Gavin to his feet, thankfully refraining from carrying him like a fucking princess. 

"Since it seems like you're in good hands, I'll be off." Colin moved closer and, in a movement that made Gavin’s breath hitch slightly, swiped a few errant strands of hair from his forehead. “Get well, Detective. Maybe we will meet again someday.” He smiled, less awkward than Connor still sometimes looked, and Gavin had to swallow subtly. 

“S-sure. Yeah.” While putting his earpiece back into his ear, the android left with a last wave and Gavin couldn’t help but stare after him. When he heard the clearing of a throat he turned towards Connor, Hank just behind him. They were both staring at him with annoyingly smug expressions, Hank looking seconds away from laughter. “Shut up.” Gavin hissed, his face growing hot. 

Stupid fucking colleagues. 

\---

Four days, he had been missing. Hidden away in a secondary warehouse, just on the outskirts of Detroit. His souvenirs: Dehydration, malnourishment, two broken ribs, three broken fingers, broken nose, slight case of pneumonia, concussion, muscle spasm, and _trauma_. Four-day stay at the hospital, followed by a three-week leave of absence from work, and even then only desk duty for at least a month. Therapy sessions for the trauma. 

Fucking yay.

During his second day at the hospital, Gavin was already bored out of his mind. Some people came to visit him, Chen and Fowler on the first day, Fowler mostly for a report obviously, though he did congratulate Gavin for his mostly successful mission. Only after the man left, Gavin remembered that he had meant to ask how the fuck he had gotten compromised.

On day three, Connor and Hank came to visit and while the android was fussing around with his patient chart, Hank was asking him several questions about the Crave family. Just as Gavin had figured, the raid had been a complete bust and the biggest players had escaped without a lot of trouble. Perkins, apparently, was in deep shit and Gavin had laughed so hard when Connor had told him, that his cracked ribs had probably ended up broken, too. When the conversation came to a lull, he finally remembered his question. “Nobody told me, least of all fucking Robin Crave. He said it wasn’t on me, but-”

“It wasn’t.” Hank interrupted with a huff. “You did well. It was stupid, really. Remember the Brosco case? With the kidnapping?”

Carter Brosco had kidnapped single mom Mariah Dorian and her five-year-old daughter, after having previously stalked her. The DPD had managed to catch him just before he had left the state, thanks to several androids who had consented to have their memory probed to find his location. Gavin had been one of the detectives on the scene, but the case had nothing to do with the Crave family whatsoever, so he raised his eyebrows. “Yeah?”

“You were caught on tape, in the background, by a NEWS drone.” Mouth slacking open a bit, Gavin’s mind replayed that day and he vaguely remembered seeing some flying around the location. “They must have seen the footage, your badge was on display.”

“Fuck.” The word came out in a long breath and he rolled his eyes towards the ceiling. 

Hank nodded. “Yeah. Fuck.”

"It wasn't all for nothing, Gavin." After setting down the tablet, Connor joined Hank in the chairs next to Gavin's bed. "We have a lot of important information about the family thanks to you."

"Gee, thanks." Huffing, the detective leaned back into his pillows. "At least my broken bones were good for something then."

The android bristled slightly and Gavin was sure that he would have turned slightly pink if he had been human. "That's not- I didn't-"

"Relax, man, I'm fucking with you." Slapping his hand against Connor's arm and promptly hissing when his broken fingers reminded him of their state, the detective groaned. "This sucks. The worst of them are still out there, probably on the other side of the country by now and I'm here, bored to death in a stupid nightgown that doesn't cover my ass." When he saw Connor make a face at the comment, he snorted. "Don't even look like that. You're fucking a man well into his fifties, his ass can't be-"

"And that is my queue to leave." The android stood, while Hank, not at all offended or embarrassed was laughing his head off. 

Gavin quickly reached out to tug Connor down again. "No, wait, stay. I'm seriously bored, please."

They stared at each other for a moment, Connor glaring and the detective as innocent as he could possibly muster, wide eyes and all. The android let out a long-suffering sigh and sat back down again. "How much did it hurt to close your fingers?"

"So fucking much."

"Good."

Tina eventually came along on day four to drive him home and laugh at him, because fucking Connor told her about the bridal carry business. He made her make him coffee and pick a movie for him after and she pitied his state enough to do as asked. She even ordered his favourite pizza.

\---

Being out of the hospital was great. At first. 

Until Gavin realised that going back home, meant going back home _alone_ , and as much as he loved them, his cats weren’t exactly the best guard animals out there. The second the door closed behind Tina, key turned and bolt latched, he instantly felt paranoid. And whenever Gavin felt paranoid, anxiety messing with his head, he did one thing. Bundle up on the couch, cats left and right and watch some shitty movie loud enough that his neighbours complained. 

The problem with that plan was that noise wasn’t exactly relaxing at the moment. Certainly not sudden noise. So what he did instead, was bundle up with his cats and put on the TV on mute, simply for the benefit of the flickering lights. His cats were cuddlers, it wasn’t hard to get them to join him, especially after he fed them copious amounts of treats in apology for his absence. 

He still wasn’t relaxing. Sleep didn’t come that night, and it didn’t come the next. He barely left his place on the couch, only ever to throw in a frozen pizza or other into the oven or feed the Double O’s. Three days into his stay back at home, he probably looked worse than he had in the stupid Crave basement. Gavin wasn’t a particularly vain person, but even he felt pretty awful whenever he happened to shuffle past a mirror. 

And then one of his neighbours burned their no-doubt disgusting ready-made meal and triggered the apartment building’s fire alarm.

Gavin’s body just completely shut down. The glass of water in his hands fell to the floor and shattered, his cats scattered and hid around the room and the detective slumped to his knees. He couldn’t breathe. His ears were ringing and he was almost sure that he could feel water on his face. Everything felt too much, his chest clenching as he gasped, and his vision tunnelling as he was staring down at his hands, bandaged fingers looking crooked, even though he knew that they’d been set in the hospital. He _couldn’t_ \- 

“-eathe.”

He couldn’t _think._

Everything felt wet and cold and isolated and he could swear that he was hearing instruments screeching, again and again, _and again._

“-eed, you need t-”

Something was grabbing him, someone was touching him and every instinct in his body yelled at him to fight. So he started thrashing, fists flying blindly, as his eyes flickered around widely. “No.” His own voice came through the haze in his mind and it sounded rough and broken. “Stop. No!” 

“Detective Reed. Please.” His arms were crossed over his chest forcefully, covered by strong arms, and his back was pulled close towards a firm chest. “You need to breathe. Calm.” The words were spoken calmly and the body he was leaning against was warm. Not Robin. Not the basement. The coldness in his chest slowly thawed and as he felt the chest at his back expand in regular movements, his own breathing slowly adjusted to it. He was held for a while, wheezing faintly as his thoughts started to puzzle into a coherent picture again. “There you go.” The voice whispered against his hair. “Just like that.”

“Con-” It wasn’t Connor. The android hadn’t called him ‘Detective Reed’ in a long time. Probably not another random RK800 unit, so that only left: “Colin?”

“Leave your questions for later, Detective. For now, breathe.” He could almost imagine that he felt the words rumble in the chest he was leaning against. Less pinned now, he was almost being hugged by the RK900 unit, but he would have time to be embarrassed about that later. “Very good, deep breaths.” 

Gavin slumped back against the chest then, limbs going liquid. “How the fuck did you even get in here?” Later, he decided. Later he would feel ashamed, but for now, he just leaned closer, soaked up the warmth of the android’s body and hoped the shivering would stop soon. He felt the man heat up again, warmer than normal. Warmer for Gavin. “‘nks.”

“I meant to visit you sooner, but my last few days at work have been very hectic,” Colin spoke against the back of his head, seemingly content in their position. “When I arrived I heard the glass shatter and scanned you, detecting the panic attack.”

Gavin huffed, frowning. “Let me guess, my lock has to be changed again?”

There was a slight pause, the android clearing his throat. “The door, I’m afraid. I wasn’t as efficient as I might have been in a different situation.”

“Of course,” the detective sighed. Colin was so warm. So incredibly warm and comfortable, he couldn’t help his eyes sliding shut. “Just perf-”

\---

He woke up again, in his bed, sun shining in through the curtains. Sitting up groggily, he looked around his loft, only to see his cats swarming around Colin in the living room. It was too far to hear, but by the movements of the android’s lips, Gavin was pretty sure the man was talking to them, as they meowed at him. Something warm grew in his chest and he frowned at the sight, hand involuntarily moving over his heart, rubbing. “You’ve slept for twelve hours, Detective.” Letting his hand fall, quickly, Gavin looked up to see Colin move closer. “I’m sure you needed it.”

“I…” Alec jumped up onto his bed and into his lap. He cupped his hands around him, stroking the soft fur. “Maybe.”

“You haven’t been sleeping, Detective. How long?” The android asked, voice firm but not judging. 

Gavin still felt like a chastised child. “Three days,” he mumbled as Alec rubbed his little face against his hands. 

“I’ve made tea, Detective.” When Colin reached out to stroke his own fingers through Alec’s grey fur, their skin touched briefly and Gavin suppressed a shiver. “I hope you don’t mind.”

“‘course not.” Clearing his throat, he picked Alec up and gently sat him down on the bed. He ignored Colin’s penetrative gaze and pulled the blanket away to stand up. “But I think I’ll take a shower first.” 

“Of course.” The last thing Gavin saw before closing the door to the bathroom, was the android sitting down on his bed, Alec squirming closer to rub up against him, the little slut.

The shower helped him feel slightly better, though he didn’t bother shaving, even though his shadow was creeping into actual beard territory. A little patchy, perhaps, but who did he have to impress anyway, Colin? “Ah fuck.” He hadn’t brought clothes to change, but the ones he had worn before quite frankly reeked. Towel, then. Nobody to impress, nothing to be self-conscious about. “ _Fuck_.” He knotted the towel down around his hips and raked a hand through his hair. Fantastic. Just what he needed.

Opening the door, he peeked outside, sighing in relief when he didn’t see the android on his bed anymore, only James and Alec cuddling on top of the covers. Stuart was nowhere to be seen, probably prowling around Colin still. He moved towards his closet, pulling out the oldest and softest clothes he could find. It ended up being a set from his police academy years, sweats and t-shirt pulling a little tight, but unbelievably comfortable. He couldn’t see Colin from his position, so he assumed the android was behind the kitchen divide. He still hurried in dressing. He stopped to scratch both Alec and James behind the ears and then moved into the kitchen.

Colin, sitting at the table reading on a tablet, looked up when he heard him enter, and levelled him with another intense stare. “What? Something on my face?” Gavin asked, raising his eyebrows as he sat down in front of the android, noticing Stuart sitting in his lap. His LED was yellow again, maybe he had been on a call?

“Not at all.” Colin smiled, pushing a mug with steaming tea towards him. “You look rested.”

“I guess I actually feel rested, for once.” The detective yawned behind his hand and took a sip. “So what’s the verdict on my door?”

The android let the tablet sink completely, giving Gavin his whole attention. “I have already ordered and installed a new model while you were asleep, Detective, you don’t need to worry.”

Surprised, Gavin blinked and then let out a laugh. “Of course, you did.” He shook his head, as he leaned back in his chair, a grin slowly stretching over his lips. “I guess I have a lot to thank you for.”

Frowning, Colin made a disagreeing sound. “Considering I was the one who destroyed your door, I wouldn’t necessarily ask for gratitude.” 

The detective rolled his eyes, exasperated. “You know that’s not what I meant, tin can.”

“Tin can.” The android blinked at him, adopting an almost human gaze of confusion. “Should I be insulted, meatbag?” Nearly snorting his tea through his nose, Gavin quickly put the mug down as he doubled over in wheezing laughter, groaning when his still very much tender ribs protested harshly. Colin stared at him with a smug expression, but then frowned when Gavin stayed slumped over the table. “Detective?”

“Sorry.” Gavin wheezed. “Not in the best condition to laugh.”

The android hummed, pushing the tea closer again. “My apologies. Do you require medicine against the pain?”

“‘m fine.” Gavin waved him off and pulled the mug towards him, inhaling a few sips. “I’m fine. All good.” Leaning back against his chair, he looked at Colin with a crooked smile. “So. What exactly lead to you kicking my door in? You mentioned checking up on me?”

“Yes. I meant to visit sooner.” Sitting up straighter, the android frowned. “There’s also something you should know.”

“That most of the Crave family got away? Yeah, I’ve been told.” Gavin huffed, but Colin shook his head. 

“Actually, no. You have… not missed that Special Agent Perkins had ordered me to leave you in the Crave basement.” At Gavin’s snort, Colin inclined his head. “I have to admit that his reasoning has been completely biased and unprofessional. I couldn’t lea-”

“Colin.” Gavin frowned as he raised his hand to silence the android. “I don’t know what you’re doing, but you don’t have to explain Perkins to me. The dick's been a fucking thorn in our sides for years.”

Colin showed a faint smile at that. “I’m… glad to hear that. Because I agree and am transferring into your precinct.”

The detective, who had been in the midst of taking a sip of his cooling tea, inhaled it completely, causing him to sputter and cough into his mug. “You what?” He wheezed out once more, tea flowing down his chin, incredibly attractively no doubt. 

“I’ve been talking to Captain Fowler, he is not at all opposed to working with another detective android. Connor, too, seems… happy.” The word still sounded a bit foreign to him and for the first time, Gavin wondered when the RK900 unit had deviated. Back during the revolution? Later? When had he joined the FBI?

Of course, he could ask him like a normal human being, but who ever said that Gavin was anything but difficult? “Do you-” He frowned, taking a large gulp. “Do you have a partner already?”

“I have for a fact.” The android seemed weirdly hesitant and Gavin waved his hand in a go-on motion. “You.”

The thud of the mug sounded overly loud in the sudden silence and the detective could even hear his cat breathe a little nasally. “Oh.” His chest felt warm again, his hand involuntarily moving back to rub against it. What the fuck was wrong with him?


	2. Revenge

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Second chapter up!  
> Let's see how well those two get along as partners.

He knew what the fuck was wrong with him. God fucking damn. 

“So should I warn you when your infatuation starts showing down there.” Gavin’s eyes moved towards Tina, glaring. “Or will you notice?” She asked with a leer, hand moving away again from the general area of his crotch.

“Hilarious.” Shifting his feet down from their position propped on his desk, the detective grabbed his mug and almost whined when he saw that it was empty. “Damn it.”

“Come on, it’s time for a coffee break anyway.” Hitting his shoulder, Tina jumped down from her perch on his desk and Gavin followed her quickly into the break room. While she prepared the coffee, he leaned against the standing desk, eyes moving back to Colin, who was standing with Captain Fowler in his office. He was discussing their latest case, having let Gavin stay behind ‘because of his current questionable mood’. “Jesus, Reed. Keep it in your pants, I’m gonna vomit.”

Groaning, Gavin leaned his head against his crossed arms on the table. “I _am_. Trust me, I am. Which is the fucking problem.”

The break room was thankfully empty, so only he had to hear Tina’s snorting laughter. “I've never seen you like this. It’s revolting.” She placed two mugs next to Gavin’s arms, leaning in herself. “Seriously, what’s so different about him? You’ve hated ConCon for months.”

“ _ConCon_.” The detective made a face and pulled his coffee close. “I don’t even know. Half of the time I wanna punch him in his dumb, smug face. The other half, though.”

“You wanna blow him.” She teased, but he only leered right back at her, making her choke. “Does he even have a d-”

“Colin!” Having seen the android approach, Gavin quickly interrupted Tina, stomping down on her foot for good measure. “How’d the briefing go?”

“You bastard.” With a hiss, Tina kicked him under the table and left the room with her mug securely in hand. 

“Love you, t- Hey. Hey! What are you doing?” Snapping his eyes away from her retreating back, the detective turned towards the android, who had grabbed his coffee mug and promptly dumped its content into the sink. “Nooooo.”

“Gav, this would have been your fourth cup today and it is barely noon.” Colin deadpanned, grabbing a tea bag and putting it into the washed-out mug, hot water following quickly. The steaming mug was placed back in front of him, but Gavin only glared. “Stop being a child.”

“ _Stop being a child_.” The detective mocked, rolling his eyes. “Green tea,” he seethed. “You want to kill me.”

“Quite the opposite.” Colin shrugged, as he came to stand next to Gavin, shoulders brushing lightly. "I see you are slightly less bitchy by now."

" _I_ see you've been learning new vocabs with Anderson, again." Patting the android patronizingly on the head, Gavin snickered into his cup, taking careful sips despite his protests. He didn’t really hate the green tea. He just liked being a bother.

By the faint smile on Colin’s lips, the asshole knew it, too. “The Captain was very satisfied with our recent case.” He seemed to hesitate for a moment, and Gavin braced himself because Colin was rarely hesitant around him in recent weeks. When the android just looked at him, eyes moving over his face, the detective huffed. 

“Spit it out.”

“There’s been sightings of the Crave family, Gavin.” The reaction was near-instant. Gavin felt the blood leave his face, and nausea rose in his throat. His knees fell weak and his elbow slumped painfully against the table. Colin reacted accordingly. Almost immediately he grabbed Gavin and boxed him back into a corner of the little kitchen, his bigger body hiding him completely from the view of anyone passing the break room. He was being pulled close, his face smooshed against an incredibly soft wool fabric, a warm hand grounding on his neck. “Breathe.” The voice was low, the sounds of the precinct easily overshadowing it, but they were so close that Gavin heard him perfectly anyway. “That’s it. Breathe with me.” Androids didn’t breathe, of course, but Colin was mimicking the motion anyway. “Remember your therapist's exercise. I know you don’t think highly of it, but try.” Closer, he was pulled even closer. “What do you see?”

“Your fucking turtleneck, you prick.” His voice came out muffled and coarse, his arms trapped between him and Colin, crossed tightly over his own chest. 

“What else?” The android was calm and collected, body still and warm against Gavin.

The detective took a deep breath and tried to concentrate on that body. “Your plastic skin. The mug.” A few more deep breaths. “The table and the stains on the floor.”

“Feel?”

“Your fucking turtleneck.” A breathy laugh and Colin pulled him even closer. “My shirt. My jacket. Your hand on my neck.”

“Hear?”

“Precinct chatter. The dishwasher. The dripping faucet.”

“Smell?”

“Coffee.” Slowly, his body started to relax and he slumped forward slightly. “You.” He wasn't back in the basement.

“Taste?”

“Grass. Cause of the fucking tea.”

“Okay.” Colin kept him close for a moment, hand on his neck massaging gently. “Breathing is back to normal. Pulse slightly heightened. Blood pressure fine.” He leaned back slightly, eyes moving over Gavin’s face. “Colour back.” He placed his hands on his cheeks and tilted his head up and down. “Eyes clear. Good.”

“I hate you.”

“Mmmhm.”

\---

Colin had started working for the DPD three months ago. When Anderson had found out that he was to become Gavin’s partner he had laughed so hard that Connor had had to support him with an amused look of his own. Everyone else had been shocked to see how easily the detective had accepted the fact. Except for Tina, who had heard the whole story from Gavin of course. 

A couple of weeks into their partnership, with Gavin still on desk duty, they had been sitting on Gavin’s couch, reviewing Colin’s latest findings of a seemingly simple robbery case. And while Gavin was nursing a cup of tea in his hands, the android’s were filled with Stuart, James lying snuggled against his thigh. The detective kept sneaking glances at him and the cats, and with narrowed eyes he eventually leaned closer, slapping the back of his hand against Colin’s forehead. The android flinched in surprise and turned to meet Gavin’s eyes. “Detect-?”

“I knew it!” Squinting at him with a grin, Gavin shook his head. “You’re running hot so the cats will love you!” 

Colin stared at him for a moment, blinking. “I think you underestimate your cats’... love of cuddles.”

They looked at each other for a long while, Gavin’s eyes still narrowed. He hummed, displeased and leaned back again. He knew he was right and when Alec jumped up to join the cuddle pile, he huffed out a laugh. “They don’t, though.” When Colin only tilted his head to the side, Gavin stalled by scratching the newcomer behind his ears. “They don’t really like strangers. They hate Hank, though that’s probably because he reeks of shaggy dog.” He made a face but then smiled when Alec headbutted his hand. “They tolerate Tina. For some weird reason, they love androids, though. They immediately loved Connor.” The android opened his mouth slightly but then stilled, seemingly nervous. “What?”

“You and Connor.” He began, hands moving over Stuart gently. “You hated him in the beginning.” It wasn’t a question, so he had probably talked to his cousin about it. 

With a snort, Gavin placed his file and mug onto the couch table, to lean back against the cushions more. “Yeah, I… I wasn’t a fan. Wasn’t a fan of you guys in general.” Colin mirrored his position as best as he could with three cats around him, indicating his head for the detective to continue. Gavin sighed as he leaned his head back. “It’s a long story, but the abridged version is that I didn’t have the best experience with androids. Again and again, I’ve been told that you were machines, made to take on lesser jobs, made to help. But it wasn’t really help in my eyes. I saw people lose work at constructions to androids, saw people commit more and more crimes to support their families. The system that was implementing you didn’t think about the outcome, about the consequences.” He couldn’t look at Colin while saying this. He liked Colin, hell he liked Connor, it seemed horrible to say it now, especially since the android didn’t try to argue, he just listened intently. “Rich people, with fancy degrees were sitting around, saying that the people would be happy to have those lesser jobs done for them by machines. But there were so many workers, who didn’t know anything else, who couldn’t just find a new job, because theirs was taken by an android. The problem was-” And here he had to look into Colin’s eyes, had to make him understand. “The problem was that I blamed you. The androids. I saw Connor become a detective and immediately saw androids taking over our jobs. I saw them in the streets and imagined how it would continue. I didn’t stop to think who was actually putting you to work. I blamed the androids and that was… wrong.”

Colin hummed in thought. “Detective-”

“Connor is…” Gavin interrupted him firmly, needing to finish now, to make sense. “Connor is a little shit. He’s a smartass, but really, he _had_ to be to survive Hank. But he’s hard-working, he’s loyal and he’s smart. And not just because his brain has access to the web, but he’s, I don’t know, street smart. When the revolution happened a lot of us idiots were confronted with the realisation that you are not just machines. _I_ was confronted with the realisation that you didn’t just take the jobs of people out of maliciousness, but because you were programmed to do so. We thought deviancy was a virus, a curse in the beginning, but really, it was just inevitable.” He groaned a little, moving a hand over his eyes. “I’m not making any fucking sense.”

“No, you are.” Moving slightly closer, Colin placed a hand onto his wrist to pull it away from his eyes. “Much like we were programmed to behave in a certain way, you were programmed to _think_ in a certain way. You have lived through your own form of deviancy, Detective, and I for one am happy for it.” 

Feeling annoyingly exposed again, Gavin pursed his lips as he looked at the android in front of him. The place on his wrist that Colin was touching, grew hot, but not in a painful way. “Yeah.” He sighed again, looking down. “Me, too.” Clearing his throat, he grabbed the mug again, grimacing when he felt how cold the tea had gotten. He stood then, to reheat it, but also to get some distance between them. “If you tell Connor-”

“You will melt me down, I know, I know.” But Colin didn’t let him achieve the distance, following him into the kitchen. “I am certain, he already knows, Detective.”

Feeling his cheeks heat, Gavin grumbled as he crossed his arms. “Stop calling me Detective, I have a name, you know?”

“I am aware.” The android leaned close and Gavin should hate it, but he really really didn’t. “What should I call you, then? Prefered by you?”

“Just… just Gavin’s fine.”

“Noted.”

\---

Colin was meant to inform Captain Fowler if he thought that Gavin wasn’t up for the case. He wasn’t, they both knew that, but for some reason, the android didn’t mention this to Fowler. The detective had been on active duty again for the past month and he had to admit, they were a good team, Colin and him. While Hank and Connor were still the first response team for android related crimes, when their hands were full, Fowler started to send out the new Android-Human force. Their latest case had been one of those cases, but one that was quickly solved. Someone had been stealing biocomponents from one of the closed-off dumps that had remained since the revolution. The android had been quickly apprehended but with Colin’s help, they had been able to avoid destroying her. The dumps were now being combed for still usable components, that were meant to be given back to cyberlife for repairs and adjustments. 

The two of them… had gotten close. With Gavin only recently cleared for duty, his visits with the therapist had also just barely finished. He felt fine, in general. But whenever he struggled, Colin was there. He didn’t know if the android kept constant tabs on his vitals, and he wasn’t sure what to think of that, but it felt… weirdly nice. To have someone _know_ when he was doing badly. It felt safe. 

Of course, he would never tell anyone, because fuck that. 

Soon enough they were sitting in Gavin’s flat again, case files around them and cats prowling the kitchen. Colin had his own flat, Gavin knew that, but for some reason, they usually just stayed at his. Probably to appease the Double Os. “Don’t you dare feed them treats again,” Gavin mumbled as he was munching on a carrot stick himself.

The android, who had been about to reach into his pocket froze, looking up at him. “How did you-”

“You’re predictable, Nines.” The nickname came easy these days and he saw Colin’s lips twitch upwards a little from the corner of his eyes. Turning towards him completely from the file he was currently studying, Gavin gave him a look. “You realise they already love you more than me, right?”

A little laugh left Colin, who placed his hands back on the table and started playing around with his own tablet. “I can assure you, they feel plenty for you, Gav.”

“Yes yes, greed and ownership. They are not my cats, I am their human.” The android only chuckled at that, smiling at Gavin, who had to swallow uncomfortably at the open look. Stupid feelings. Like his life wasn’t miserable enough.

They continued working in silence for a while, cats moving away as they finally realised they wouldn’t be getting any food. But Gavin kept peering at the android, a question on the tip of his tongue, he didn’t quite know how to ask. When Colin finally looked up at him with raised eyebrows, the detective sighed. “Why didn’t you tell Fowler about the… you know.”

“The panic attack,” Colin added matter-of-factly, putting the tablet back down. “The word won’t hurt you, Gavin.” When Gavin only rolled his eyes towards the ceiling, the android hummed. “Despite your history, or rather, because of your history, I feel like you are still the best man to find the Crave family. Besides,” And he made sure to lock their eye together for this. “I feel like you need this. Closure. Bluntly said: Revenge.”

“ _Revenge_.” Gavin drawled the word out, the following laugh a little cynical. “Fowler would have your head if he heard this, idiot. Literally.”

“Then let’s not tell him.” Colin’s smile was sly and the detective’s heart picked up its pace slightly. “And if something happens, I’m there. You’re safe.”

“Shut-” Spluttering, Gavin gaped at him, face heating up. “Shut your whore mouth, I don’t need you to keep me safe!” The android only kept grinning at him, as the detective slapped his tablet down onto the table. “Fucking asshole.”

\---

Since the first episode right after his release from the hospital, Gavin had had four panic attacks in total, not counting the one in the break room. The first one had happened right after Colin had left his apartment and Gavin had sat down on his couch. Alec had sat on the TV remote and had unmuted Die Hard by accident, the sudden sound of explosions pushing Gavin right over the edge again. He had managed somehow, huddling down tightly, breathing into his hands, as tears prickled in his eyes. It had taken about half an hour to calm down and the Double O’s hadn’t left his side. 

Then the next one had caught him off guard a couple of days later when the water from the shower had hit his face at just the wrong angle. The third one had been on his first day back at the office, in a bathroom stall of all places.

That’s obviously where Colin had found him ten minutes into it. He hadn’t knocked, hadn’t even called out. One second Gavin had been sitting on the closed toilet lid, eyes getting more and more blurred and the next one, he was looking into stormy grey and had a warm pressure on the sides of his neck. “Detective Reed.” Hair was pushed out of his face and one of his hands was gripped in a firm grasp, fingers closing around his pulse point. “Detective Reed, I need you to corporate. Can you hear me?” He did his best to nod, but it was shaky; _he_ was shaking all over. He couldn’t help it. Everything was loud: The precinct, the bathroom, his own breathing, _Colin_. “Unclench your hands, please.” 

“W-what?”

“Unclench your hands.” His fingers were gripped and gently pried from his own forearms, the wells his fingernails had left behind, stinging faintly. “Very good, grip my hands, you can’t hurt me.”

“Sho-” A gasped in breath. “ _Show-off_.”

“I see you haven’t lost your charming demeanour.” The glare he levelled at Colin probably fell flat, what with the hyperventilation. But the distraction slowly helped, his mind moving from the memories in his head to the android right in front of him. “Good. Breathing slowing down. Pulse falling.” 

“I _hate_ this.” Gavin finally rasped, grimacing when he felt how sweaty he was. He pulled into himself, but Colin didn’t let him go. “I fucking hate this.”

“You are healing.” The android stressed, weaving their fingers together. Gavin couldn’t help but stare at them in silent confusion. “It will take time.”

Without pulling his hands away, the detective cleared his throat and leaned back a little. “Why are you so good at this?” 

“The first RK line, like Markus for example, was built for medical care, physical and mental,” Colin explained it slowly, stroking his thumb slowly over Gavin’s wrist. He was relaxing more and more. “I still have all of his codes, so does your Connor.” 

Snorting, Gavin rolled his eyes, enjoying the breath he was able to take. “Not my Connor.”

“Lieutenant Anderson’s Connor then.” His hair was pushed out of his forehead again, combed back. “Are you back, Detective?”

With a heavy sigh, Gavin nodded. “Yeah.” He looked up then, shivering a little as his eyes sharpened. “If you _ever_ tell any-”

“Detective.” Colin’s face was a little pinched and Gavin pulled back into himself, waiting for the coming disapproval, but the android only tilted his head up. “You have nothing to be ashamed of.” When the detective only frowned, Colin smiled at him, disarming and open, so very open. “But I won’t tell anyone if you do not wish me to.”

It was small things that triggered them in the beginning. A sudden noise, water on his face, somebody touching him out of nowhere. But Colin was there for the fourth time as he had been for the first time. He had been there for the last 3 months. He was there in the break room. 

Nines was a good partner. Too bad, he was slowly driving Gavin completely insane. Tina was having a blast making fun of him these days.

\---

They had leads. Old and new informants, sightings all around Detroit, but especially concentrated around one of their secondary warehouses. Not the one they had kept Gavin in, but on in the middle of Detroit, run down and dirty. Gavin hadn’t known that particular building himself, but he had seen the address come up in documents flying around the Crave house. “This seems too easy,” he mumbled, slumped into his car seat, thermos of coffee limply in his hand.

Colin gave him a look. “Patience is a virtue, Gav.” 

“Do you see me fucking rush in there?” 

“My hand is quite literally on your sleeve to hold you back.”

“Excuse you, I’ve been doing this job longer than you’ve been… alive.”

“And how is that an argument, exactly?”

Groaning, Gavin slumped even deeper. “Fine! Just, wake me when you see anything.” 

“Obviously.” 

Turning away from the android, Gavin forcefully closed his eyes. Even without a clock he could hear the seconds tick by in infuriating detail. “Sorry.” He felt Colin turn towards him and could only imagine the shock on his face. “I’m not trying to be difficult. I’m… restless. Couldn’t sleep much in the last few days.”

“I am not surprised.” It should have sounded condescending, but it didn’t, so Gavin tilted his head to face him. “You are aware that I’m observing your vitals, Gavin. Do you really think I wouldn’t notice?”

Gavin huffed but didn’t look away, his voice going soft. “I should be angry about this.” His eyes moved over the android’s face, frowning slightly. “Why aren’t I?”

“Because you know that I care about you.” There was that smile again, weakening Gavin’s resolve more and more. His resolve to ignore his feelings, as he usually did. His resolve to stop whatever was happening between them. It was fading, from open smile to open smile. 

“Nines, I-” Before he could actually think about what he wanted to say, something caught Gavin’s attention from the corner of his eyes and he sat up quickly. Red hair. “Crave.” 

Colin sat up in his own seat, eyes focusing on where the detective was pointing. “We can’t move out.”

“I _know_ , idiot.” Almost growling, Gavin pushed his shoulder. “I’m just observing.”

The android just pushed him back. “Good.” But the word sounded amused. 

\---

“That is _not_ the plan, Gavin.”

“It is because I say it is!”

“We are not using you as bait.”

“Why the fuc-”

Hank cleared his throat and straightened from his perch against his table. “We are not, for a fact, using you as bait.”

“Oh come on!” Glaring at the smug look Colin sent him, Gavin huffed, sitting down in his chair. “It’s a good plan.”

“It’s an unnecessarily risky plan.” Connor threw in from the side, Hank and Colin nodding along. “Gavin, even if we agreed, even if Captain Fowler agreed, do you really think the Craves would fall for you as a trap?”

“I-!” He stilled, thinking back to what he knew about the family, especially about Robin and Dolores. “I…” He frowned, slumping deeper and letting out a growl. “Well, what else do you propose? Another pointless fucking raid?”

“We need to think this through, Gav.” Colin, who had been standing behind his chair, leaned closer, his jacket brushing against Gavin. “I am not letting you risk your life for a foolish case of wounded pride.” 

“That’s what you’re saying now.” The detective seethed, crossing his arms. “Few days ago you were talking about _revenge_.” 

Standing upright, Colin exchanged a look with Connor, Hank raising his eyebrows at him. “Let’s talk in the breakroom, Detective.” His arm was yanked upwards, his body following involuntarily as the android dragged him towards the kitchen. He was left in the slightly sheltered corner near the coffee machine again, Colin towering over him, looking displeased. “I thought we agreed that we wouldn’t tell the precinct about your questionable motivations for this case.”

Gavin let out a disgruntled snort. “I thought I was ‘the best man to find the Crave family’, isn’t that what you said, Nines?” 

“Not when you are being wilfully difficult.” He frowned when he was boxed closer into the corner, the android’s eyes narrowing into a slight glare. “I am trying to keep you from doing something stupid. You are being too rash.”

Feeling cornered, Gavin tried to puff up a bit more, jabbing Colin’s chest with his finger. “Because I’m fucking angry, okay?” The android’s mouth twisted down. “I’m _angry_ , because once again, there’s nothing we can do, unless we catch them red-handed and they are _smart_ , as much as it pains me to admit it.”

“Do you think I am not pissed about Perkins’ botched raid? It was my case, too, Gavin. But you getting hurt will not help us!” 

Stilling, Gavin stared up at Colin with widened eyes. It was the first time the android had raised his voice at him and his heart was beating a steady pace against his ribcage, as he leaned against the counter to get some distance between them. “Pissed, you say?” He asked with a faint voice. “Look at you, learning new emotions like a big boy.”

“Gavin.” The exasperation in Colin’s voice was clear, but a smile still crept onto his face and the detective relaxed. “I’m just trying to keep you safe.” When Gavin was about to retort something, the android quickly grabbed his face between his hands, gentle despite the speed. “I _want_ to keep you safe.” 

Moving on their own, his hands grabbed the front of Colin’s shirt, and the detective looked down, feeling thoroughly out of his depth. His chest was feeling tight and his breathing was coming a bit harder, but he had the feeling it wasn’t a fucking panic attack for once. They were at the precinct for crying out loud, this wasn’t the place for… whatever was happening. Taking a shuddering breath, Gavin used his hands to push Colin away a bit, dislodging his face from his grasp. “Yeah, yeah, whatever. I won’t do anything stupid.” The android moved with him, as he stepped around him, lips pinched.

“Thank you, Gavin.”

\---

“He’s going to be the death of me.” Tina only laughed at him, slapping him on the back a few times. “Seriously. What the fuck.”

“I’m sure, you’ll be fine, you drama queen.” They were on their way back to the precinct from an actually-good-coffee run, Gavin carrying Hank’s order while Chen had Chris and Person’s orders. “Though you might want to think about actually acknowledging this thing between you.” 

“There is no _thing_ ,” the detective snapped, but Tina hadn’t been offended by his moods in years. She only grinned at him knowingly until he rolled his eyes. 

They were entering the bullpen when she almost made him choke. “I’m just saying. I’m getting a bit tired of the raw sexual tension.” 

“Christ, woman.” Gavin gaped. “What kind of fucking books are you reading?”

“Only the best kind.” Her grin turned even wider, as she moved away from him to deliver her coffee orders. “Think about it!”

“Fuck you!” Turning away from her, Gavin’s eyes met Hank’s, who was staring at him with raised eyebrows. “It’s nothing.”

“Sure.” The lieutenant drawled out, taking his cup. “I’m sure I don’t wanna know.”

“There’s nothing _to_ know!” Sitting down at his own desk, Gavin let his forehead slump against the wood, wishing he hadn’t inhaled his own coffee on the way back. “Where are the plastic faces?” The words were muffled, but evidently Hank heard him anyway, cause he shrugged. 

“Kitchen, I think.”

“Here, in fact.” Connor’s voice rang out, coming directly from behind the detective, causing him to jump slightly. “Apologies, Gavin.” When the called only grunted against his desk, Connor shared a look with his newer model. Colin shrugged his shoulder and shook his head faintly. 

“Colin.” The android turned towards Hank, who pointed a finger at him. “Do us all a favour and make sure your man actually sleeps this weekend, yeah?”

“ _His_ ma-”

“Certainly, Lieutenant.”

“Excuse you, I am nobody’s man!”

“Thank you, Colin.”

“ _Fuck_ you, guys.”

\---

“Would you stop the sulking?” Gavin was sitting on his couch again, arms crossed over his chest, slumped into a definitely not healthy position. “You like this movie.”

“I would l _ike_ to review the case.” It was eight in the evening on a Saturday. The movie in question was the original version of Star Wars, not those dreadful remakes made 10 years ago. He _should_ probably relax. But not when they had an important case open. 

Colin sighed next to him, an emote he had been using more and more since meeting Gavin. “The case will not run away. You need a few days off, Gav.”

“ _You_ don’t.”

“Yes, but I also do not need to eat, drink, and sleep.”

“Show-off.” Colin turned with him, as Gavin jumped from his seat, and grabbed his wrist. 

“Gavin, where are you going?” 

The detective glared at him and tried to shake his hand free. “To get the files. I’m not sitting around just doing nothing.”

“You haven’t been doing nothing.” The android stressed. “But fine, as you wish.” With a yank, Gavin was toppling onto the couch again, breath leaving his lungs. Before he could protest in any way, he felt himself being rearranged, cats fleeing, and with a blink, Colin was lying right on top of him. “Now, you are doing nothing.”

“Are you mental? Get off of me!” He struggled, trying to push the android off, but he was essentially like a hunk of metal just on top of Gavin, stealing his breath away. “You’re _heavy_. you idiot, I swear to God-”

“What will you do? Since I am such a _show-off_ as you keep telling me, let me show off.” Somehow he made himself even heavier, pushing Gavin into the couch completely. “I am stronger than you. Taller. Heavier and infinitely more patient. So _what will you do_?”

“I will fucking murder your ass!” He tried to struggle some more, even tried to flip them, legs closing tightly around Colin’s, but to no avail. In the end, he slumped down with a breathy groan, the android melting on top of him, blanketing him completely. “Ugh. I hate you.”

“I know.” He mumbled something else above Gavin’s head, but the detective didn’t hear it. Star Wars was merrily playing in the background, as Gavin slowly relaxed, breath evening out again. “There you go.”

“Shut up.” Stretching a little to relieve his arms, the detective wriggled around until his arms moved up over Colin’s back, grasping his sweater lightly. “You _do_ run hot for me and the cats," he grumbled, as his eyes grew heavy, in defeat and exhaustion. 

The smugness in the android’s voice was obvious. “And why am I doing that?” Gavin mumbled something into his shirt, but Colin only clicked his tongue. “What was that? Tell me, why am I doing that, Gav?”

Gavin sighed and completely sank into his couch. “Because you care... about us.”

“Exactly, because I care about you.” Reaching up to pet the detective’s hair, Colin hummed in agreement and settled a little more comfortably onto his partner. “And now sleep.”

Freezing, his hands tightened in the soft wool. Sleep? Like this? “With you on top of me?” He managed to choke out.

The android let out a weird wheeze that was probably meant to be a chuckle. “Why not?”

Why not, indeed? Closing his eyes, tightly Gavin concentrated on his breathing. Colin’s weight on top of him didn’t feel bad; on the contrary… it felt good. It felt safe, as always when the android was near him. But it also felt… hot. And not in the heat kind of way. Taking a deep breath, he made out his scent. Subtle, just the detergent used to wash his clothes, no cologne, a faint smell of Thirium. It was a comforting scent by now, something familiar and warm. “Why are you-” He stopped, but Colin nudged him to continue. “Why do you care?” His voice was soft, deep with almost sleep, but earnest. 

The android didn’t say anything for a moment, and Gavin almost wondered if he had shut down to simulate sleep. But then Colin braced himself on the couch, lifting himself to look down at him with something like confusion in his eyes. “Gavin.” There was that tone of exasperation again, but it was gentle and not at all annoyed. “When I found you in that warehouse, I didn’t even for a moment entertain the thought of leaving you. Agent Perkins was my boss, my handler. He ordered me to leave you, to pursue the running family and I didn’t listen for a second. I saw you and knew that I had to get you out of there.” Frowning, Gavin tried to look away, not sure how to react, but Colin shifted his head back to face him. “The year since the revolution, I was… lonely. I was activated and immediately coaxed into deviancy by Markus, a few days after the Battle of Detroit. He asked me to work for Perkins and the FBI as a peace treaty, and not knowing what to do with myself, I agreed. I didn’t really have anyone at the FBI.” Gavin’s fingers tightened again, almost pulling the android closer, making him smile. “I was living with Markus and Simon at the time, and they are still my friends, but other than them, I had no one. And I didn’t mind… until I saw you interact with Connor and Hank at the hospital. Seeing them taking care of you so naturally, seeing you relax the moment they walked in, it was… weirdly like a second act of deviancy. I ordered the transfer the very same day and connected with Connor to make it happen.”

“Nines, how does this answ-”

“Gav, the DPD could have easily been the same for me, but it wasn’t thanks to you.” Stressing the words, Colin moved the hand on the side of Gavin’s head to the side of his neck. “You took me in, no questions asked. You trusted me to help you, even your cats accepted me in the span of a few minutes. You asked me to come to lunches, despite knowing that I don’t eat. You always included me in your talks with Hank and Connor. Gavin, you have no idea how much that mattered. I could have been _just_ as lonely, but I had you, and you pulled me along.” He smiled that open smile again, grey eyes crinkling and Gavin forgot how to breathe. “I care for you, Gavin, because you showed me that you care for _me_.”

The detective was sure that Colin could feel his heart beat against his chest, it felt so violent. He didn’t know what to do with himself. He was essentially cuddling his partner, who he was more than attracted to and Colin’s words woke hopes in him again, hopes he didn’t dare to feel. “Nines-” He couldn’t say anything. He _couldn’t_. He knew his track record with relationships, or rather the specific failings of those. He was a mess, he couldn’t make someone happy in the long run, he knew that much by now. The android had found happiness with them at the DPD, had made Gavin’s life better as well. What if they didn’t work? What if Colin chose to _leave_. He was a great detective, Hank and Connor liked him, hell the whole precinct did. _Tina_ liked him. He couldn’t mess that up, could he? If it was just Gavin’s life that was being affected, maybe he could have been selfish - always so selfish. But not when Colin was affected so much by his new life. He couldn’t ruin this. And he _would_ ruin it. For a second, he pulled the android close, hugging him tightly, hearing the surprised intake of breath. “You’re right. I care about you,” he mumbled into his shoulder, squeezing once. “And thank you. For being there for me.” He pushed then, and this time Colin moved without resistance, his face open in wonder. “I think I should actually sleep now, like on a bed.”

“Oh.” The android stared at him for a moment, eyes moving over his face. “Sure.” Pushing, he sat up completely, moving off of Gavin, letting the detective breath again. “Let me just gather the files and I will leave.”

“You don’t-” The words had tumbled out of his mouth before Gavin could stop them and he stopped. But Colin looked at him, still so soft and almost vulnerable, so he forced them out completely. “You could… stay, if you wanted, or whatever.” Clearing his throat he messed up his hair and moved towards the kitchen. “I will feed the cats, whatever you want.” 

Half an hour later, when he was moving towards his bedroom area, the android was still sitting on his couch, Star Wars mutely in the background, the cats divided between them. Gavin smiled faintly at the sight, his heartbeat slowing down to a calm pace. 

This - whatever they were - it was enough. It was good.


	3. Catharsis

It was a month and a half after the first sighting of the Crave family back in Detroit, that Colin rushed into the precinct, coffee for Gavin swiftly placed onto his desk. “I am an idiot.”

“Uhm.” Gavin blinked up at him with wide eyes, hands having quickly gathered up the papers on it when the coffee almost spilt over. "I've been telling you, yes. Why do you agree?"

“Every month or every second month an android should be doing a scan of themselves to see if any software needs updating, any stored information can be deleted or are essential in the next few days and-”

“Nines, Christ.” The detective slapped a hand over Colin’s mouth, the lips underneath continuing to move. “Take a breath, I know you don’t need it, but you’re going too fast.”

The android actually looked a little embarrassed. “Apologies.” He cleared his throat, the human reaction making Gavin chuckle a little. He indicated for Colin to go on and sat back down, the android quickly sitting down onto his desk, instead of his own desk. “I was doing my scan this morning and found a file that I have disregarded as unimportant until recently, I have - in human terms - forgotten about it. The warehouse, Gavin, the secondary one. After reviewing your report of your knowledge of the Crave family, I have planted cameras. But since the family ran and the place was only ever used for storage then, I have neglected the information until today.” The detective sat up straight at that, eyes alert. “There is footage, Gavin. We have evidence.”

“What!” Jumping up, Gavin moved closer to him. “How have you _forgotten_ that? You’re an android for fuck’s sake, how did you-” When Colin just looked at him with widened eyes, the detective sighed. “ _Fuck_ ,” he mumbled his hands on his hips. His lips slowly stretched into a wide grin. “Fuck! We have evidence!” His hand slapped against Colin’s shoulder, who slowly started to smile, too. The slap wasn’t enough tho, so Gavin took his shoulders and shook them, making the android laugh. “We’ve got evidence!” 

“What’s that noise about?” Hank and Connor had entered the precinct, the lieutenant frowning at them. 

Gavin’s grin only widened as he rounded on them. “My incredible idiot of a partner has found us evidence! I could-” Instead of finishing, he grabbed the android’s face and pressed his lips soundly against his cheek, Colin’s eyes growing wide again. “What are we waiting for? Show me!”

“Yes, Colin.” Connor smirked at his cousin, moving closer. “How _did_ you think of it just now? Has something been distracting you recently?” Gavin saw Colin glare at him, his LED spinning yellow in some form of distress. 

He shrugged it off, almost vibrating out of his skin. “Who the fuck cares! Let me see the footage!” 

\---

Their partnership tended to work so well because Colin generally knew how to deal with Gavin. If he was being in one of his moods - as Tina liked to call them - Colin either knew how to calm him down, or he knew how to stand up to him. Gavin yelled for coffee? If he asked nicely, the android would bring some. If he ordered? He could get it himself. Gavin chewed someone out? If it was deserved, Colin stood behind him, menacing ice on his face. If it wasn’t? The android pulled him back by the back of his shirt and apologized in his stead. Gavin yelled at Colin? The android ignored him for the next thirty minutes until Gavin came back, bored out of his mind, apologizing. 

The year after the revolution, Gavin had slowly started to accept androids as more than what he had been told. He had studied up on them, had interacted with them differently, had thanked his android officers for helping with cases.

His relationship with Connor hadn't changed overnight. But the less hostile Hank had gotten, the less reason Gavin had had for his own hostility, the more he felt like an idiot for _being_ hostile. Connor had still been snarky and Gavin had given more than the android might have earned. The first time he had called the detective by his name, Gavin had snapped at him and asked who he thought he was. The android had obviously started to use the name excessively and after a while, it had stuck. Tin can became Connor, Anderson became Hank - at least sometimes - and Reed became Gavin. 

Colin had just fit right into their new little dynamic.

\---

“This is amazing!” Gavin was walking up and down in the records room, the feed of Colin’s camera showing them heavy activity. Both Robin and Dolores were seen multiple times, working on the shipments and delegating goons. “It’s perfect.”

“I don’t think I have ever seen you this excited before,” Colin remarked behind him and Gavin only grinned at him. 

“Say whatever you want, Nines, nothing will ruin this day for me!”

Fowler whistled from the side, moving closer to them. “Famous last words, Detective Reed. I hope you can deliver on this amazing find.”

“Just you watch, Captain. Just you fucking watch.” The detective thrust his finger in Fowler’s direction, smile never fading. “We will get those bastards once and for all!” 

“Don’t be rash now, boy.” Shaking his head when Gavin only sniggered like a maniac, the Captain turned towards Colin. “Please keep him safe. And everyone else _from him_.”

“Don’t I always, Captain?” The android asked with a smile as he observed his ecstatic partner. 

“God, you’re both crazy. Just get those fuckers off the streets.”

\---

“Gavin, you are going to vibrate out of this seat soon.” Connor was leaning forward in the backseat, his coin passing from hand to hand, while Hank sat slumped backwards. Colin and Gavin were sitting in the front, the detective’s leg shaking up and down. 

“You have no idea how long I’ve been waiting for this day, tin can!” The words had lost their negativity months ago, now it was just a nickname like any other. “They will _pay_.” With a mean smile, Gavin cracked his fingers, some still crooked in the slightest way. 

“Don’t be-”

“If I hear the word rash one more time, Hank, I will go _berserk_.” 

With a snort, the lieutenant nodded his head. “Noted.”

“You got the warrant, right Nines?”

“No, Gavin. I decided to throw it away five minutes ago when you asked me for the seventh time.” Colin gave him a look. “I thought it would be funny.”

They looked at each other, Gavin faking a slow laugh. “Let’s do this then?”

“Let’s.” The android agreed with a grin of his own. 

It should have been easy. It wasn’t a raid, there was no FBI involvement, it was supposed to be an easy arrest. They knew Robin and Mama D were inside, along with some lesser family members and a whole bunch of lackeys. They surrounded the warehouse and had Hank and Connor, and a bunch of officers observe each exit, as Gavin and Colin simply knocked.

It _started_ easy enough. The lackey that opened the door got scared shitless when he saw their badges, eyes flickering nervously to Colin. He saw the warrant and basically broke down, letting them in and cowering near the entrance. The detectives moved in, a few officers as backup. 

From room to room, people were being arrested and escorted outside, but the Craves were predictably in the very last room. Gavin and Colin stepped in first, Hank and Connor having joined them after securing their exits. They moved in carefully, guns holstered but hands at the ready. With a silent count to three, they jumped in. “DPD, freeze!” Gavin and Hank yelled simultaneously as chaos ensued. Two Crave cousins tried to jump at them but were quickly dealt with by Connor, Colin moving around him to jump two more lackeys. Gavin immediately turned towards Robin. “Hey, _love_. Did you miss me?”

“Gavin. What a surprise.” The redhead smirked darkly, hand moving behind him, but Gavin quickly turned his own gun on him. “Glad to see I didn’t break you too much.”

Sneering, the detective moved a finger over the light scar left from the bite. “I’m sure you are, Robin.” He checked to see if the other people were being dealt with. Some lackeys were on the ground with handcuffs, some were already being dragged from the room by uniforms. Mama D was with Hank. 

“I see you’ve gotten yourself a shiny new partner. Never figured you to be an android lover.”

“That’s probably because you don’t actually know me at all.” Gavin advanced, hand on his gun as steady as ever. So maybe the therapist visits had helped after all. “It’s over, Robin. Get your hands up.”

“Always so bossy, love.” Crave purred, slowly raising his palms. “I do miss our dynamic.” 

“Aww.” Pushing the hand with the gun to his heart mockingly, the detective moved even closer, other hand getting the cuffs. “I gotta say, I found a better one. I guess I have you to thank for that.”

“My fucking _pleasure_.” The move was swift, faster than Gavin anticipated. One second, Crave’s hands were still up and the next a shot was ringing out, as the detective was pushed aside.

There was warmth spilling onto his face and all he saw for a second was blue. Moving on autopilot, Gavin rushed forward, knocking the gun out of Robin’s hand. With a quick move of his elbow, the redhead was tumbling to the ground, blood splattering from his nose. There was a shout and Connor came forward, pushing him down onto the ground, knee on the small of his back. There was yelling, Mama D calling out over Hank’s shouts. The _shot_. Ears ringing and throat dry, Gavin looked down at himself. Blue Thirium was stark against his bulletproof vest. 

Colin’s Thirium. 

His breathing shortened out. His eyes were still on Robin, but then he looked to his left and saw Colin, kneeling with a hand pressed to his side. _Colin’s blood_ was all over Gavin’s neck and face, weirdly cold, seemingly seeping into his skin. The shouting stopped, the sound of static filling Gavin’s ears, a high pitched sound screeching. 

He couldn’t breathe. 

His partner got _shot_. He had _his partner’s blood_ on his skin. The handcuffs clattered to the ground, Gavin’s eyes blurring. “ _Colin_ ,” he breathed, stumbling towards him. 

The android looked up at him, LED spinning an aggressive red. Gavin’s knees hit the ground in front of him. There was a bullet hole ripped through Colin’s side, his sweater in tatters and Thirium slowly leaking through it. “Gavin.” The detective’s hand gravitated towards it in his haze, shivering when his fingers touched the cool slick, the coldness so unlike his usually warm partner. “ _Gavin_. Shh… it’s over. Gavin, look at me.” Tilting his head up with one hand, the android placed the other against his chest and slowly started to move it, guiding his chest along. Oh. _Oh_. He was having a panic attack in front of the whole warehouse. In front of the officers, and Hank and Connor. In front of _the Craves_. Fuck. “Breathe, Gavin. It’s over.”

“-shot.” The word punched out of him, his hands grasping at the hem at Colin’s hip. “You’ve been shot.”

The LED went from a furious red to a calculating yellow. “I will be fine, Gav. I’m an an-”

“Not... indestructible.” Gavin’s chest was slowly starting to move with Colin’s hand, steady and normalizing. “You’re not… indestructible.” 

“You got this, Colin?” Hank called from the door. “We’re gonna walk the Craves out now. We’ll push the interrogations to tomorrow.”

“We will be fine, Lieutenant, thank you.” Gavin couldn’t hear the words completely, everything sounded muffled, like his head was stuffed with cotton. Soon the warehouse grew quiet around them, the static leaving his ears. Colin cupped the sides of his neck. “It’s over, Gav. We are alright.”

“You have a fucking hole in your side.” His voice sounded hysteric even to him, and Colin actually laughed at him a little. “Don’t you fucking laugh!”

“Your breathing is close to normal. Let’s get you home, Detective.”

\---

Ignoring Gavin’s protests, Colin had made sure he got home safe, before driving over to Cyberlife to get his wound fixed. In the car, Gavin had pressed a bottle of Thirium into his hands, after making sure that the hole was bandaged enough for no more leakage. Once alone, the first thing the detective did was rip his clothes off and stuff them in a trash bag. The Thirium might have evaporated already, no trace seen, but Gavin could still _feel_ it, cool and thick on his skin. And he knew that Connor and _Colin_ would still be able to see it. It felt nauseating. 

He stepped underneath the shower and spent an hour scrubbing every inch of his body, with special fixation on his neck and face. He shampooed his hair three times before he was ready to use the conditioner. He forwent a shave, it wasn’t a shave kind of day. 

He thought he’d feel different, getting the Crave family behind bars. Thought he’d feel good, _satisfied_. But all he could think about was that shot going off and the cool splatter of blue blood. He dressed in wide sweatpants and the softest shirt he could find and sat down onto his couch. 

An hour later, he grabbed his phone.

_Where the fuck are you?_

Another half an hour later, he texted again. 

_Nines, where the fuck are you?_

_How long is this taking?_

Two hours after his shower, he was pacing up and down, his phone in his hand. The Double Os were watching him with curious eyes, as thoughts were rushing through his head. 

What if something had gone wrong? What if Colin had shut down? What if they had to reset him? Would he retain his memories? Would Gavin arrive at work tomorrow and a new RK900 unit would greet him with cool professionalism? Why wasn’t he answering?

“Fuck, fuck, _fuck_.”

_Nines, for fuck-_

“I have received your first three messages, Gav.” The sudden voice made him flinch, his phone falling to the floor. Colin clicked his tongue from the door and moved closer to pick it up. “You should have tried to sleep.”

“Yeah, right.” The detective huffed, grabbing the phone and throwing it onto the couch, Alec throwing him a disdainful look. “Like I could have fallen asleep.”

The android’s lips stretched into a smile. “It’s nice to see you worried about me.”

Rolling his eyes, Gavin put his hands on his hips. “So. You complete again?” 

“Good as new.” Colin lifted the turtleneck, he had changed into, up slightly to show the newly repaired side. “Nothing major got hit. It was mostly Thirium loss.” Gavin felt himself relax a little at the sight, hand twitching forward, though he stopped it. The android obviously must have seen the aborted movement anyway, because he simply grabbed his wrist and placed his hand on the smooth skin. 

Stepping forward, Gavin let his fingers settle against Colin’s warmth. “Still running warm for me,” he mumbled and the android chuckled, his LED shifting to yellow. “It doesn’t… hurt, right?”

“I do not feel pain, no. And the damage wasn’t alarming enough to cause a power surge.” They were standing very close, Gavin hadn’t missed that. The synthetic skin felt incredibly real, his fingertips tingling at the contact. “What about you?” He looked up in confusion and Colin smiled openly again. “Are you alright?”

“I’m not the one who’s been shot, Nines.” Pulling the fabric down again, the detective’s hand retreated and he stepped back slightly, clearing his throat. “I’m fine. Thanks to you.” 

“Good.” Colin didn’t follow him, he only reached forward to push his still faintly damp hair out of his forehead. “Wanna watch a movie? I can order food.”

“Fuck yeah.”

\---

The couch suddenly wasn’t big enough, Gavin decided, after polishing off his pizza and halfway into Knives Out. Somehow the Double Os had taken half of it, leaving Colin pushed against him, pressed from shoulder to thigh. It was warm and safe and Gavin was _suffering_. He was contemplating feigning exhaustion and hiding in his bed, when Colin suddenly muted the movie, turning as much as he could to look at the detective. “Gavin. Can I ask you something?”

He was tempted to use the _You just did_ line, but decided there was a line and he was above it. “I guess?”

The android took time to observe his face, eyes roving over it. He seemed to contemplate his question, seemed almost unsure. When he did finally ask it, Gavin choked on thin air: “Are you not interested in sex?”

Of all the possible questions his partner could have asked him, this was not high up on the list. Covering it up with a cough, he sat up straighter. “Excuse me?”

“Ever since we have met, you haven’t really shown any deep interest in anyone, not around me at least. Apart from the usual signs or curious arousal.”

“ _Curious arousal_ , I’m sorry, what?” This was quickly turning into a conversation that Gavin really, _really_ didn’t want to be a part of. “Nines, what the-”

“Every human has short bursts of arousal around people they find attractive. It is nothing to be ashamed of and I did not mean to offend.” For a while, the detective stared at him, eyebrows raising into his hairline. Colin was _nervous_. Whenever he was nervous, he reverted right back to hard facts and android typical high speech. 

“So who do I find attractive exactly?” He asked, crossing his arms over his chest.

Colin pursed his lips, eyes furrowing and LED spinning yellow. “Do you want me to make a list?”

“Be my fucking guest.”

Frowning, the android steeled his eyes, growing slightly agitated. “You don’t seem to have a… a _type_ , aside of course from your preference of men. The first spike of arousal I have ever noticed was at the hospital when Connor arrived.”

“ _Connor!_ ”

“Then again, when I started working at the Police Department. You seem slightly attracted to Officer Wilson. The day Lieutenant Anderson arrived with a ponytail you seemed to react, as well. Then there was-”

“Jesus, stop! Stop, stop.” Mortified, Gavin jumped from his seat, dragging his hands through his hair. “Why are you bringing this up, exactly?”

“I was-” Colin stopped, fingers cramping into the fabric of his pants. “I was curious.” 

“Why.”

“I don’t know, I-” 

Gavin groaned when he saw his LED spin a distressed red. “Listen. I don’t... _do_ relationships, they are messy. It doesn’t end well.”

Colin looked stricken at that. “I don’t understand.”

Sighing, the detective dragged a hand over his face. “Look, relationships are complicated, especially if one part of it is _me_.”

“But I think you’re wonderful.” The words sounded defiant and Colin stood, too, moving closer to Gavin, who had frozen in place. “Gavin, why are you always being so hard on yourself?” He moved back from the android, once more lost for words, but Colin grabbed his arms. “I may not know you as long as some other people in your life do, but I still _know_ you. And there’s nothing I would change.”

“Nothing.” The detective let out a scornful snort. “Not even my foul moods, my coffee addiction? My excessive need to be an asshole to everyone? Nothing?”

The android stepped closer, hands sliding down to his wrists. He looked at him, really looked at him, eyes almost hypnotizing. “ _Nothing_.”

“Nines.” Gavin looked down, taking a deep breath. “God, you can’t say shit like that.”

Colin chuckled, thumbs rubbing over his pulse points. “Why not? You need to hear it from time to time.”

“Because it’s fucking hard.” Stepping back, the detective tried to pull his hands away, but Colin wouldn’t let him. “You don’t understand."

“Then explain it to me.” Pulling him even closer, his forehead eventually touched Gavin’s, and when the detective felt him mimicking his breathing again, his heart melted a little. “Don’t push me away, Gav.”

He slumped forward, energy leaving his body. Colin easily caught him. “I don’t know how to keep people close.” 

“You don’t have to keep me close.” The android breathed against his temple. “I’m not going anywhere. Just don’t push me away.”

Gavin was the one to pull him closer then, grabbing slack fistfuls of the back of his sweater. His forehead found the skin on Colin’s throat, and he breathed him in. “This is dangerous.”

“You aren’t known for your safe decisions.” 

“Shut up.” 

A hum against his temple, and hands moved his head up again, eyes meeting. “Why don’t you make me.”

“Jesus, you fucking-” Finally, _finally_ their lips met in a slow drag, Gavin’s hands moving up to loop around Colin’s neck. He pulled the android impossibly close, as he slowly started to move his mouth. His heart was steadily beating against his ribcage and for once it wasn’t a panic attack causing this. As they moved together, slow and languid, Gavin started to push Colin backwards, eventually pushing him completely onto the couch and settling right there in his lap. They didn't stop kissing, not for a second, the detective just moving them until he was straddling Colin and had silky strands of his hair between his fingers. Breath was overrated, he thought as his chest slowly began to burn. Having Colin's body underneath him was intoxicating, his thighs hard against the insides of Gavin's. He shuddered as he dragged himself away, pressing quick kisses from the corner of the android's mouth all the way to the top of his cheekbone. "How the fuck are you so good at this?" He asked breathlessly, revelling in the feeling of Colin's arms wound tightly around his waist, fingers kneading into his hip.

The android didn't sound out of breath, but his chuckle sounded a little embarrassed. "I may have studied up on some things," he admitted and after a pause added: "And I may have asked Connor."

Letting out a groan, Gavin hid his face against Colin's shoulder, slumping down comfortably, aware that he was weighing next to nothing to the android. "Please spare me the details. Imagining them will only lead me to the nearest toilet."

"With your attraction to both of them, I'd think you would like the visual." The teasing tone was clear and when Gavin sat up to glare at him, Colin was grinning, eyes crinkling a little. "Your hair is a mess." Changing the subject quickly, he ran a hand through it, grin softening into a smile when Gavin pressed into the touch just like one of the Double O's would.

"And who's fault is that?" 

"It was already a mess when I arrived."

"Whatever." Gavin hesitated for a second, but with one calculating look he leaned in again, for a long kiss. Colin just moved the hand in his hair to the back of his neck and angled him just perfect for the kiss to deepen. "Hmm. I could get used to this." The smile on the android’s face was almost a little bashful. One of Gavin’s hands pressed against the recently healed side again, fingertips roving over it more freely now. “You-” He closed his eyes and dragged in a ragged breath. “You can’t see any more Thirium on me?”

In an oddly - or maybe he shouldn’t be surprised anymore - human way, Colin pressed a kiss to his forehead, shaking his own head. “No. Nothing.” He nosed along Gavin’s temple, leaning down to steal a few more tiny kisses. Which quickly turned into longer kisses again and ended with Gavin lying down on his couch, hoodie discarded somewhere on the ground, and Colin on top of him, usually impeccable hair dishevelled. He was moving his lips along the detective’s neck when he muttered something. Gavin made a questioning sound, hands sliding underneath the dark turtleneck. “I said you taste good.” The android mumbled a bit more clearly against his cheek. 

Not able to help himself, the detective started to snigger, exhaustion and adrenaline battling against each other. “Where the fuck did you get that line from, idiot. That was so lame.”

“It’s not a line.” Colin scowled down at him but Gavin only dragged his fingers up, bunching the soft fabric upwards and making the android squirm. 

“Running hot for me again, are you?” 

“Maybe. Are you complaining?”

The detective smirked, nails raking down softly. “Not at all. How about you show me how ho- Fuck!” Fur suddenly hit his face and he sputtered as Colin laughed, grabbing Stuart to place him between them onto Gavin’s chest. “Cockblock.” The detective muttered sourly and rolled his eyes when the cat only licked his nose. 

“I suppose it is dinner time.” Pressing one last kiss to Gavin’s cheek, Colin pushed himself upward. When the detective only continued to scowl at Stuart, he grabbed his hand and pulled him up as well. “Food for you and the cats first. Then we might continue.”

That got Gavin moving. 

\---

The interrogation didn’t end up taking a lot of time since they had their evidence on tape. There wasn’t much Mama D and Robin could say in their defence. Of course, not every single Crave member had been at the warehouse, but with the confessions and recordings the DPD now owned, it would be much easier to find and apprehend them. 

Their case, that is Gavin’s initial undercover case, was essentially closed and sealed. 

They threw him a party at the precinct.

It was mortifying. “You love it.” Colin was standing next to him, hands clasped behind his back, grinning down at him. 

“I do _not_.” 

“Yes, you do.” An arm was slung around his shoulder and he was pulled against Colin’s chest. His voice was lowered when he spoke again. “Is this okay?”

Looking around the precinct carefully, Gavin saw both Connor and Hank look in their direction, the latter smirking obnoxiously. Tina raised her eyebrows at him with a smile and Fowler only rolled his eyes. The rest, quite honestly, didn’t matter. He leaned back against his partner and let his lips twitch into a small smile. “Yeah. Yeah, it’s okay.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And the finish line is reached!  
> I hope you guys like it, despite the camera ex machina xD  
> I know it's a bit of a cop-out, but I'm really not too good with action scenes, so I prefered to concentrate on the relationship and Nines' help with Gavin's panic attacks. 
> 
> Thank you for reading! :D


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